This invention is an improvement over the hopper car gate apparatus and method of construction disclosed in Fritz U.S. Pat. No. 3,183,852 issued May 18, 1965 and U.S. Pat. No. 3,509,828 issued May 5, 1970.
The invention relates to railway hopper car gate outlets. More particularly, the invention provides an anti-friction support for a hopper gate during translatory movement between open and closed positions and is characterized by a simple apparatus which is self-cleaning, resists cocking and binding, is easy to repair and to maintain and which provides a labyrinth seal to minimize or eliminate loss of lading.
The prior construction of sliding gates for closing the discharge opening of a hopper, as illustrated by Fritz U.S. Pat. No. 3,183,852, for example, provided improved sealing over previous sliding gates but was not self-cleaning and often was subject to cocking and binding. The Fritz U.S. Pat. No. 3,509,828 taught the use of inclined self-cleaning surfaces and spacing of the gate from the discharge chute to reduce to a minimum the likelihood of binding therebetween during movement of the gate due to large granules of lading. This latter Fritz patent, however, required an elaborate fabricated roller apparatus and assembly method which created sealing problems, particularly when the rollers began to wear during use. The apparatus and method of construction of the instant invention combines the best advantages of these prior patents in a novel manner which eliminates or minimizes their inherent problems.